I picked up the new BMW X3 from the minus three level of a Heathrow car park. It was one of those bare concrete mausoleums where the lights turn off behind you as you pass. Creepy. Especially with the ranks of premium SUVs waiting to be picked up by the international jet set of folk with job titles you’ve never heard of: channel consultants; user-experience designers…
It was a far cry from the muddy, pot-holed state of Britain’s roads and a daily diet of dogs, school runs, supermarkets and sports grounds that most SUVs are subjected to.
Yet despite their arduous and grubby duty cycles, premium SUVs continue to sell well, especially German ones. That demands a fine balance of qualities: comfort, practicality and luxury – they need to be a cut above and do the job…
No exception for BMW which, as we await the launch of the all-electric Neue Klasse range (ironically debuting with an X3-sized SUV), has to comprehensively revamp the combustion-engined versions of its global best-selling X3, with 3.5 million sold in total. It’s a crowded market, comprising the Audi A5, Porsche Macan, Volvo XC60, Mercedes GLC and Alfa Romeo Stelvio, among many others.
The range
UK buyers can choose from a 2.0-litre mild-hybrid four-cylinder, a 202bhp petrol 20 and 194bhp diesel 20d, the last two taking the majority of sales.
In addition there is a new 291bhp plug-in hybrid 30e with a 2.0-litre petrol engine and an electric motor mounted in the gearbox, which has an all-electric range of 56 miles. At the top is the 388bhp M50.
All X3s are four-wheel drive with an eight-speed automatic gearbox. I tested the diesel in the UK’s most popular M Sport trim level, which adds lowered suspension, 19-inch wheels and variable sport steering.
Most of the revamp is about technology (read ever-more distracting touchscreens) and appearance, which starts and ends with the distinctive grille, which lights up like a fairground waltzer as you walk to the car. Does it make it easier to find your X3 in a car park? Yes. Make it more attractive? You decide.
The rest of the new X3 is as per the SUV norm; blobby, rounded and large. This fourth-generation model is longer, wider and lower than the outgoing car, measuring 4,755mm long, 2,132mm wide with mirrors out and 1,600mm high. With a driver on board, this X3 weighs 1,965kg, which is a trifle porky. The diesel can tow up to two tonnes.
Inside job
I wouldn’t choose the cream vegan upholstery (read plastic), which Herbie my Labrador would regard as a work in progress. But there is plenty of space, the seats are comfortable and supportive, while it’s not too hard to find a decent driving position thanks to a standard electrically powered seat.
That’s about all BMW gives you, however. The options sheet is a truly terrifying place; our test car had £14,150 worth of extras. As a purely academic comparison, that sum will buy you a sub-50,000-mile, four-year-old Honda CR-V.
Some of these extras come in the form of packs, which you can add as you see fit. The luxury instrument binnacle costs £450 extra, the technology pack including automatic parking is £2,275, the adaptive suspension £550, the BMW “iconic glow” (that light-up grille) will set you back £420 and the sunroof is £1,350 – the kids can sit in the dark.
Despite those options and the M Sport trim, some of the interior isn’t quite as high quality as you’d expect of a 65-grand premium car. Fabrics and materials are scratchy and clackety; the dash-top fabric, for example, resembles and feels like the filter in the ventilator hood over my cooker.
The fascia has an almost infinitesimally curved glass screen containing the main instrument binnacle and central touchscreen; the latter can be laggy in use.
Some physical switches remain, but they’re not all simple to use (the radio volume barrel for example, or the clunky haptic controls on the centre console and steering wheel). The heating and ventilation controls are operated via the touchscreen, even though the temperature touch-sensitive “slider” controls are always available. The central capstan is not as useful as the old iDrive control, but at least you can perform some adjustments without taking your eyes from the road. And the steering wheel rim is absurdly thick, positing the notion that BMW drivers have unfeasibly large hands.
From the wheel, the impression is of a big car with no sense of where the corners are; I found the cameras pretty much essential when parking.
And with 460 litres with the rear seats up, the load space is adequate. Fold the seat backs and there’s a tilted load bed and up to 1,600 litres of space.
On the road
The diesel starts with that crackling, frying-bacon sound of high-pressure combustion and the unit quickly warms. It’s a smooth and refined oil-burner, powerful and the hybrid system covers any lag, so the performance is immediate and strong. In this two-tonne SUV the fuel consumption is good but not remarkable, against the 53mpg claim I managed 44mpg although there might have been a reason for this, which I’ll come to.
It’s a large car, but the steering feels well weighted and accurate, allowing you to turn the front into corners with a reasonable assumption that it’ll end up where you pointed it. And it feels if not sporting at least well damped and suspended, as well as a cut above in terms of driving dynamics. The body resists roll without throwing everyone from side to side and the worst of the UK’s road bumps are at least partly damped out.
The ride has come in for some criticism but I didn’t find it so. There’s a positive feel from the rear, but that seems entirely in keeping with its sporting aspirations and it certainly isn’t uncomfortable. It’s no sports car, but it’s pretty good to drive and comfortable, too.
I also liked the brakes, which are strong and confidence-inspiring, with a progressive pedal feel.
The Telegraph verdict
The thing I disliked most about the test car was the huge cloud of smoke which billowed out from under the bonnet at the end of a long journey. Precautionary evacuation of Mrs English, my Labrador Herbie and the dismantled seats from my Triumph GT6 into a freezing evening didn’t prove the most popular development.
It turns out the drive-belt tensioner pulley was breaking up (“excess play” according to BMW, which reminded me of that classic Lancia endurance racing team excuse of “overheating” at the Le Mans 24 Hours race, when in fact the chassis had cracked, taking out a coolant pipe) allowing the belt to shred itself against the engine’s hard and hot bits, with predictable results.
Machinery goes wrong and we must accept that. BMW’s tech team rapidly diagnosed the issue and recovered the vehicle.
So where are we? This fourth-generation X3 is weird to look at, good to drive and rides well but isn’t so economical, has some bonkers control systems and screens and is expensive.
Pretty much the same as the previous model, then. Form an orderly queue.
The facts
On test: BMW X3 20d X-Drive M-Sport
Body style: five-door premium mid-sized SUV
On sale: now
How much? from £50,010, £64,984 as tested
How fast? 133mph, 0-62mph in 7.7sec
How economical? 53.3mpg (WLTP Combined), 44mpg on test
Engine & gearbox: 1,995cc, four-cylinder turbodiesel with mild hybrid system, eight-speed automatic gearbox, four-wheel drive
Maximum power/torque: 194bhp/295lb ft
CO2 emissions: 159g/km (WLTP Combined)
VED: £270 first year, £590 next five years, then £180
Warranty: 3 years, unlimited mileage
The rivals
Audi Q5, from £49,950
This third-generation Q5 starts at almost twice the price of the 2008 original. There are 2.0-litre mild hybrids burning petrol or diesel, the latter costing from £51,600. Like the X3, the Q5 is an Audi bestseller; this new version is based on the Premium Platform Combustion platform.
Mercedes-Benz GLC 220d, from £44,640
The SUV version of the C-class saloon and (you’ve guessed), one of the bestselling Mercs. All are four-wheel drive, with a range of four-cylinder mild-hybrid petrol and diesel engines along with a plug-in hybrid. The base 194bhp 220d achieves up to 40.9mpg and is also available as a coupé.